Community Initiatives

Strengthening Our Community

Community convener, grantmaker, resource. Some initiatives are enormously important to the entire community; others, life changing to one. Each has its place in our evolving community.

Spirit Of Giving Catalogue

2007-2008: This catalogue highlights local nonprofits. Browse and find a charity to help. Give a hand or an item or a check. Want to do more? Visit Sunland and Cielo Vista Malls during the holiday season and find the Spirit of Giving trees. Pick a tag, buy and wrap a gift and deliver it to the mall office. Still want to do more? Visit the Junior League Christmas Fair, November 6-9 and find the Spirit of Giving booth. This time you can select a tag with gift suggestions for families stationed at Ft. Bliss. Use the catalogue as your reference throughout the year to identify other ways to assist. Click here to view the Spirit Of Giving Catalogue

Plaza Theatre is Again the “Showplace of the Southwest”

2006: The Plaza Theatre Performing Arts Centre is open for business! In 2002, the City of El Paso approved a public/private partnership with the El Paso Community Foundation to rehabilitate and convert the city-owned Plaza Theatre for use as a performing arts venue. It was four years in the planning and construction. This is one of the most ambitious projects ever undertaken in this binational community characterized by scarce resources. It has provided a catalyst for local economic development and for building community by attracting individuals and businesses to the downtown area.

“Wyler Mighty Wurlitzer”

2006: With additional ranks and a dedicated console lift, the fully-restored 1930 Wyler Mighty Wurlitzer (named for Glyn and Karl O. Wyler, Sr., the philanthropists who brought it home) was brought back to the Plaza Theatre and enlarged to its current 22 ranks (rows of pipes) by Pipe Organ Artisans of Arizona. Since its installation, it has played for concerts, and regularly accompanies various shows in the Plaza Theatre, including the El Paso Symphony Orchestra.

 Conservation Across International Boundaries

2003: The Foundation is working with CEMEX, a leading global producer and marketer of cement and ready-mix products, in the restoration and protection of the Maderas Del Carmen mountain range, a magnificent tract over 252,000 acres located in Mexico, just south of Big Bend National Park. It is known as one of the most biodiverse ecosystems in North America. Our mutual goal is to manage the protection and conservation of this ecologically important area for generations to come.

Downtown Renaissance, Restoration and Revitalization

2002: For the past several years the advisory committee for the Renaissance Fund has been working closely with the El Paso Downtown Management District and the City of El Paso on projects designed to enhance Calendar Park and the San Antonio Avenue streetscape. The work has included the installation of 47 benches throughout downtown, the planting of trees and flowers, planter boxes restored and painted, trash receptacles and traffic bollards installed, and old, unsightly concrete boxes removed. The complete restoration of the 1910 historic sidewalk clock in San Jacinto Plaza was also undertaken and completed in 2005.

Showcasing El Paso’s History and Culture

1998: The mission of the Pass of the North Heritage Corridor project is to preserve and showcase the historical, cultural and natural inheritance of the population centers adjacent to the Rio Grande in the El Paso-Ciudad Juárez area. One major objective is to encourage local residents to explore and appreciate their heritage. Another is to have corridor centers serving as anchors for drawing visitors from outside the area.

Since its founding, the corridor initiative has assisted with many community-oriented projects. Following are some examples, click on the title to expand/hide the example.

• Border Institute:
  Since 2001, the corridor staff have conducted an annual Border Institute for Nonprofit Executive Directors, and on two occasions an Institute for Religious Leaders. The Institute provides general information pertaining to the El Paso-Ciudad Juárez area, as well as technical information of specific interest and direct use to executive directors of charitable and service organizations.
• Heritage Booklets:
  These six well-illustrated booklets celebrate the region’s rich history and are available at local public libraries or they may be purchased through the Foundation. A new booklet, featuring the history of the Mesilla Valley will be published in 2008. Click here to order from the Heritage Corridor Booklet Series
• Museum Exhibits:
  The exhibit, “The Pass of the North and the Creation of the U.S.-Mexico Border” have been displayed in numerous museums and centers in the area. It is currently on loan to the Los Portales Museum and Information Center in San Elizario. The Spanish version, “El Paso del Norte y la Creación de la Frontera México/Estados Unidos is featured at the Museo Histórico de Ciudad Juárez. The corridor also extended technical and other assistance to the development of high quality historic exhibits for the Los Portales Museum & Information Center. Most recently, the corridor staff have participated in the development of National Park Services wayside exhibits for the Rio Grande Trail System.
• Historical Walking Guidebooks:
  Guides for both walking and driving tours have been developed including Downtown El Paso, Ciudad Juárez, San Elizario, and the El Paso Mission Trail. Other guides, including the “Guide to Museums of El Paso and Ciudad Juárez”, “Guide to Archives of El Paso, Ciudad Juárez & Mesilla Valley” have been developed in collaboration with other community organizations. All are available through the El Paso Convention & Visitors Bureau and at many heritage venues.
• County and State Historical Markers:
  Corridor staff, in collaboration with the El Paso County Historical Commission has facilitated the development of over forty Official Texas Historical Markers. In addition, corridor staff developed the Local Markers Program featuring historically significant events, buildings, etc. with plaques that include English, Spanish and a historic photo etch. To date, fourteen markers are completed, eleven featuring the Mexican Revolution. This program is now being replicated in other Texas communities.
• Historic Preservation Projects:
  The corridor staff have been active participants in the restoration of Old Locomotive Number 1, Socorro Mission, Historic Sidewalk Clock and the Plaza Theatre.
• Community Planning:
  Corridor staff have served as catalysts for the development of the Rio Grande Trail System, the Texas Mountain Trail, El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro National Historic Trail, and most recently the Preserve America 2007-08 El Camino Real Heritage Tourism Planning grant for the City of El Paso. Corridor staff convenes monthly meetings to focus on the further development of El Paso’s heritage tourism infrastructure.
• El Paso Museum of History Design Plan:
  In 2001 the corridor project staff convened a series of meetings with the El Paso Museum of History Advisory Board to develop recommendations regarding the Exhibit Design Plan for the new Museum of History, opened in 2007. The Design Plan was incorporated into the master plan for the new Museum of History.

Wyler Tramway Becomes Part of State Park

2001: The Foundation donated a large parcel of land and its aerial tramway to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department to be included in the Franklin Mountains State Park. The State purchased new tramcars and turned the area into a tourist attraction. The site is appropriately named the “Wyler Aerial Tramway” after Karl and Glyn Wyler, Sr., who originally willed the land to their Foundation.

Move to the Historic Cortez Building

2000: The Foundation relocated its offices to the Cortez Building in demonstration of its support of downtown revitalization. Opened in 1926, the Cortez Hotel was originally known as “a castle of old Spain on the plaza of El Paso.” It was designed by renowned regional architect Henry C. Trost as an elaborate example of Spanish Colonial Revival style. Its beautifully decorated private club, The City Club, has been fully restored and now serves as an important meeting room for nonprofit groups.

Enabling Artists to Focus on Their Work

1997: By providing a live-in studio and gallery, the Border Art Residency enables artists to pursue their craft without the worry of immediate sales or an outside job to pay for housing expenses. Artists selected for the program are able to achieve a greater degree of personal growth by concentrating on individual goals. They also share progress with local students, educators and the public.

Located on two acres in the serene Mesilla Valley, this spacious facility was converted and remodeled from an old cotton gin by UTEP sculpture professor, Willie Ray Parish. On January 1, 2000, resident artists began their work in this special residency. The work space is a 22' by 30' passive solar studio with 9' ceilings. The first floor is a gallery which provides a venue for exhibitions. The second floor loft studio can house an individual artist or a couple. The Residency is located at the corner of Highway 28 and Vinton Road in La Union, NM.

WaterWorks Brings Potable Water to the Colonias

1996: The Foundation joined with the Pew Charitable Trusts and Charles Clements, MD to address pressing public health hazards in colonias (poor rural neighborhoods) in Texas and New Mexico. The project, know as “WaterWorks,” has assisted these communities with construction of water and wastewater systems and hook-ups through a modified version of a proven self-help program known as the Small Town Environmental Program (STEP). WaterWorks provided low interest community financing, community organizing assistance, and engineering and construction oversight.

Providing Affordable Housing

1996: The El Paso Foundation was selected as one of 18 cities in the nation to participate in the Ford Foundation’s Community Development Partnership Program. Community representatives met for some months to plan a successful model to address the need for affordable housing. The El Paso Collaborative was the outcome.

A successful private-public partnership was forged, drawing funding from the Community Foundation, Ford Foundation, Fannie Mae, the National Council of La Raza, the Enterprise Foundation, and the Bank of America. In the first year, the Collaborative worked with 60 groups committed to the issue through advocacy, direct services, technical assistance and sponsors of development. As of 2008, the Collaborative continues its community development work.

Responding Internationally to HIV/AIDS

1994: In response to the HIV/AIDS crisis, a binational volunteer corps created the Border AIDS Partnership in conjunction with the Foundation. Money is raised locally and matched with grants from the National AIDS Fund and the Elton John Foundation. As of 2008, it has distributed over 1.3 million dollars to nonprofits in El Paso, Ciudad Juárez, and southern New Mexico.

Loan Fund Makes Running Water Feasible in Rural Areas of El Paso County

1988: The facts were startling—over 68,000 people were living in the outskirts of El Paso without water or wastewater systems. The Community Foundation listened to community input and established a pioneering $1 million loan fund with 5 local banks and the Lower Valley Water District that allowed lower valley colonia residents to hook up to running water. Residents could borrow the $300-$800 it cost to have water piped directly to their homes and pay for it on their water bills. It was the first loan fund of its type in Texas.

Living on the Desert: Conserving Our Natural Resources

1987: The Ford Foundation awarded a $500,000 1:2 matching grant toward the Community Foundation’s proposal to develop a localized environment curriculum for third through eighth grades in El Paso and Hudspeth counties. The school districts had a mandate from the State to teach students about the local environment, but they did not have the tools. By providing funding, the Foundation was able to allow the experts to develop a localized product that would be useful for all. A goal was to create a creative, exciting learning atmosphere. Eventually it is anticipated that children will internalize and appreciate the importance of saving our desert resources. El Paso Water Utilities, El Paso and Ysleta ISDs provided teachers-writers and additional educational resources.

Better Beginnings for Babies

1983: Very early in the history of the El Paso Community Foundation, President Janice Windle found herself seated next to Susan Berresford, then a program officer at the Ford Foundation. What ensued, besides a lifetime friendship, was an offer to be part of a national research demonstration program studying adolescent pregnancy, Project Redirection. The El Paso ISD partnered with the Foundation.  The Juárez partner was Hospital de la Familia. The model worked with pregnant teens and young mothers who were in school. The key component was a Community Woman, a volunteer who was extensively trained and agreed to provide key support to the teen. For two years the program was carefully monitored and found to be worthy of replication. In 1985, management of the program was transferred to the YWCA, and in 1987 it was selected one of two Model Programs for the state of Texas. The program is still operated from the YWCA.